Baillieu opts for more modest myki

The controversial and problem-plagued Victorian transport ticketing system myki will be retained in a modified form.

By Jason Murphy

Updated 22 Jun 2011 — 4:40 AM, first published at 12:01 AM

The controversial and problem-plagued Victorian transport ticketing system myki will be retained in a modified form.

Contract changes will cost taxpayers, but it will be cheaper than scrapping the system.

The modifications will take myki off regional trains and remove ticket- selling machines from trams, and there will be technical changes.

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A new contract will be negotiated with provider Kamco over coming months and include new performance measures and closer oversight.

Victorian Premier Ted Baillieu justified the decision to retain myki, saying “our aim in all of this has been to provide Victorians with a reliable ticketing system, to provide certainty to commuters and taxpayers".

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A full review by Deloitte consultants found changing ticket systems would cost more than $1 billion and that a modified myki system had the technical capacity to do the job.

Originally due for rollout in 2007, myki was launched 2010. When the Baillieu government took office in late 2010, it pledged to consider scrapping the project.

Mr Baillieu refused to reveal the budget for the contract changes yesterday, but said it was likely to cost taxpayers a “significant additional amount". The magnetic-stripe Metcard system will remain until the end of 2012.

NSW had so much trouble with its Tcard project that it cancelled it in 2008. A new smartcard project was initiated in 2010 and a contract issued to Cubic, the company behind London’s Oyster card.

Perth introduced a smartcard called SmartRider in April 2007. The card is used for 70 per cent of transport trips with customer satisfaction well over 90 per cent.

Victorian Opposition Leader Daniel Andrews said Mr Baillieu had convinced many Victorians he would follow NSW’s example and scrap the system.

“He’s spent months and years merci­lessly criticising a system that hundreds of thousands of Victorians use every single day. Myki is so bad, according to Ted Ballieu, that he is determined to keep it."

Public Transport Users Association president Daniel Bowen welcomed the development but said scrapping plans for ticket vending machines on trams was a massive retro­grade step.

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“This . . . is likely to lead to rampant fare evasion, both deliberate and accidental, particularly in suburban areas with few retail outlets. Twenty years ago, Labor tried this with scratch tickets – it was a disaster, and it seems history is doomed to repeat itself," he said.

The original myki contract was negotiated with Kamco, a company owned by US-based Keane. Kamco is now owned by Japanese IT group NTT Data and Mr Baillieu said he had faith the Japanese entity wanted the project to succeed.

At the announcement of the decision Mr Baillieu also described a few technical issues he had suffered with his personal myki card.